iOS 26.2 Beta 1 – All New Features, Changes & Performance Summary

Software Update

iOS 26.2 Beta 1 — What’s New & Noteworthy

Developer Beta

  • Liquid Glass Intensity Slider Lock-screen clock’s Liquid Glass effect gains a new intensity slider under Customize → Liquid Glass. Sliding up increases tint and blur; sliding down produces a clearer, glass-like look.
  • Reminders Alarm Option You can now enable Urgent (Alarm) when creating a reminder — it plays an alarm even if Focus is active or the phone is muted. A global toggle and “Complete” shortcut are also available.
  • Podcasts — Auto Chapters & Mentions Apple Podcasts now supports automatically generated chapters, podcast mentions, and a From this episode section showing links and topics referenced by the host.
  • Apple News UI Redesign Navigation bar updated — Audio and Following now separate. Added horizontal “Discover” slider on the main feed for trending categories like Sports, Business, and Entertainment.
  • Enhanced Safety Alerts New Enhanced Alerts section under Notifications includes earthquake alerts, imminent threat warnings, and an option to share approximate location to improve alert delivery.
  • Sleep Tracking Changes Sleep Score levels updated: Very Low (0–40), Low (41–60), OK (61–80), High (81–95), Very High (96–100). Sleep Focus icon now purple instead of green.
  • Live Translation Expansion AirPods Live Translation expands to the EU starting with iOS 26.2. Apple confirms rollout expected in December — likely timing for the final 26.2 release.
  • Performance & Battery Performance remains consistent with 26.1. Early Geekbench results on iPhone 17 Pro Max ≈ 3856 single / 9767 multi. Battery drain minimal in short-term testing.
  • Stability & Release Timeline First beta feels stable and fluid. Expect multiple betas before final — estimated release around mid–December 2025.

This summary covers iOS 26.2 Beta 1 (November 2025) based on developer testing and early beta feedback. All names and trademarks are property of their respective owners.